Defending Water for Life in Maine seeks a Jan-Plan Research-Activist Intern

The Defending Water for Life Campaign focuses on educating Maine communities about the global water crisis and its local implications.  Our work is grounded in the following goals:
●    to preserve and expand local democratic control of water and water services;
●    to ensure an open democratic process with regard to decisions relating to the use of local water resources, the cost of water services, and any proposals to shift operation or ownership of public systems to private corporations;
●    to ensure safe and affordable water for all people now and in the future;
●    to protect water-related environmental resources; and
●    to counter corporate marketing of water as a commodity by advocating that water be treated as a public
resource to be held in the public trust as a commons to be protected for people and nature for all time.
●    To change water from being treated as an economic commodity, and instead managed within a framework that water is a fundamental right to people and nature.

Today, the Defending Water for Life campaign is working to unify rural communities that would otherwise be isolated in their efforts to defend their groundwater.  We believe that by developing statewide power in this way that both local and state initiatives will emerge that create comprehensive and democratic solutions that will protect Maine's groundwater for generations to come.  For more info, please check out www.defendingwaterinmaine.org
We are looking for an intern that can devote 30 hours a week during their short-semester to help Defending Water for Life develop a Maine Water Reader.  The intern must be self-motivated and able to work independently.  Other research experience is helpful.  The internship will take place in Maine.  

Topics of research include:
1.    Rights Based Organizing.  Defending Water for Life works within a rights based framework.  In the same vain that abolitionists advocated for the rights of African-Americans and suffragists advocated for the rights of women, we work to advocate the rights of nature.  Research assistant will look into effective strategies used by passed rights-based movements (ie abolition, women's rights, civil rights, etc) and help develop our future strategy within this framework.
2.    Agricultural, industrial, and utility water use in Maine.
3.    environmental and labor violations by bottle water industry in Maine.
4.    environmental health of Maine's surface waters.
5.    Impacts of developing green-jobs in Maine
6.    Challenges faced by Penobscot and Passamaquoddy in their efforts to protect their water resource.

If you are interested please contact
Emily Posner.  
Organizer for Defending Water for Life
info@defendingwaterinmaine.org
www.defendingwaterinmaine.org
207-930-5232